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A review by daniela_endless_tbr
Not As Advertised by Violet K. Avery
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/6.
🌶🌶🌶/5.
What a delightful read this was! It's the first debut novel by this author and I'm impressed with what she wrote as it is the first book. I loved the story, characters and the representation it has ranging from chronic anxiety to Pokemon. It was endearing, sweet with a dash of possessiveness and the spice was 🎇.
I loved Abbie. She was sunshine when she was herself. I feel like she was so well written. She was adorable when she felt embarrassed and that happened a couple times. She was hard-working even though the job she was doing wasn't the dream one but she will fake it until she makes it.
I love that even through her struggles in her work, she tried to do it until she got it and she never put blame on her boss, Aiden, or anyone else. I appreciated that others saw how much she did without announcing it to the world.
She still has an ongoing battle with her chronic anxiety and her troublesome mother but she takes a day at a time. She has friends in her corner that i adored and now she has Aiden too.
I like the fact that Abbie stopped or asked for time to make big decisions like jumping in a fling of sorts/ relationship with her boss. She thought things through and I loved that she knew herself enough to acknowledge what she could handle and what she couldn't.
Aiden had a tough childhood and he was forced to take care of his sisters and his mother so as an adult his goal is to earn enough money so that his family doesn't have to go through rough times like in the past which lead to just work and not have a life outside of it until Abbie appears in his life.
He was such a good boss but also a good man. He had his feet firmly on the ground and his eye on the price but he just couldn't purge Abbie from his thoughts and he tried to so when an opportunity to have Abbie presented itself , he couldn't refuse.
I loved that he explicitly asked for Abbie's consent every step of the way especially because what Abbie deals with on a daily basis.
He was supportive in every way he could and I just loved seeing them fall in love.
I'm not a big fan of keeping relationships a secret however I like how Violet wrote it. Aiden felt like Abbie deserved a lot more than that and felt bad about it but they both agreed it was for the best. Safe to say, it didn't take long until the secret came out.
The third act break up was somewhat expected but I have to say that it was well done because it showcased this man who was always in control of everything, just lose it and yes he let Abbie go because of it but he immediately regretted it (with the push of Claire and his mom) which in turn made him in a way feel and know how Abbie feels whenever she is overwhelmed with emotions and needs space and time to put herself together again.
On the other side of things, this served to push Abbie towards her dream job but also out of her comfort zone and just do something for herself. I loved how she dealt with it but also how forgiven she was. This was the type of story that I didn't get mad when he forgave him because that's just how Abbie is plus Aiden is a great guy overall.
Aiden did his big gesture and I loved it. It was surprising but then it was obvious too. I love the fact that he doesn't mind feeling silly because his reward is Abbie's big smile and that's what he strives for every time.
I loved them together and how good they are for each other.
I loved Ethan too and I wonder if we'll have his story soon if ever. I would love to read it.
Indigo's (Abbie's BFF) showdown with Aiden was everything. I LOVED it! I can't wait for her story next and to find out who's the lucky man.
* I read an arc of this book. *
🌶🌶🌶/5.
What a delightful read this was! It's the first debut novel by this author and I'm impressed with what she wrote as it is the first book. I loved the story, characters and the representation it has ranging from chronic anxiety to Pokemon. It was endearing, sweet with a dash of possessiveness and the spice was 🎇.
I loved Abbie. She was sunshine when she was herself. I feel like she was so well written. She was adorable when she felt embarrassed and that happened a couple times. She was hard-working even though the job she was doing wasn't the dream one but she will fake it until she makes it.
I love that even through her struggles in her work, she tried to do it until she got it and she never put blame on her boss, Aiden, or anyone else. I appreciated that others saw how much she did without announcing it to the world.
She still has an ongoing battle with her chronic anxiety and her troublesome mother but she takes a day at a time. She has friends in her corner that i adored and now she has Aiden too.
I like the fact that Abbie stopped or asked for time to make big decisions like jumping in a fling of sorts/ relationship with her boss. She thought things through and I loved that she knew herself enough to acknowledge what she could handle and what she couldn't.
Aiden had a tough childhood and he was forced to take care of his sisters and his mother so as an adult his goal is to earn enough money so that his family doesn't have to go through rough times like in the past which lead to just work and not have a life outside of it until Abbie appears in his life.
He was such a good boss but also a good man. He had his feet firmly on the ground and his eye on the price but he just couldn't purge Abbie from his thoughts and he tried to so when an opportunity to have Abbie presented itself , he couldn't refuse.
I loved that he explicitly asked for Abbie's consent every step of the way especially because what Abbie deals with on a daily basis.
He was supportive in every way he could and I just loved seeing them fall in love.
I'm not a big fan of keeping relationships a secret however I like how Violet wrote it. Aiden felt like Abbie deserved a lot more than that and felt bad about it but they both agreed it was for the best. Safe to say, it didn't take long until the secret came out.
The third act break up was somewhat expected but I have to say that it was well done because it showcased this man who was always in control of everything, just lose it and yes he let Abbie go because of it but he immediately regretted it (with the push of Claire and his mom) which in turn made him in a way feel and know how Abbie feels whenever she is overwhelmed with emotions and needs space and time to put herself together again.
On the other side of things, this served to push Abbie towards her dream job but also out of her comfort zone and just do something for herself. I loved how she dealt with it but also how forgiven she was. This was the type of story that I didn't get mad when he forgave him because that's just how Abbie is plus Aiden is a great guy overall.
Aiden did his big gesture and I loved it. It was surprising but then it was obvious too. I love the fact that he doesn't mind feeling silly because his reward is Abbie's big smile and that's what he strives for every time.
I loved them together and how good they are for each other.
I loved Ethan too and I wonder if we'll have his story soon if ever. I would love to read it.
Indigo's (Abbie's BFF) showdown with Aiden was everything. I LOVED it! I can't wait for her story next and to find out who's the lucky man.
* I read an arc of this book. *
Content Warnings
FMC has chronic anxiety.